A First Taste of Italy's Adriatic Coast

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22 cliff divers dip into the vibrant atmosphere and waters of Polignano a Mare

The arrival of the world's best cliff divers in Italy for the year's fifth stop turns the tiny Adriatic town into a buzz. The athletes from 11 nations dipped into this vibrant atmosphere and used the days ahead of the competition to explore the cliffs on which the town was built. Various take-off spots and acrobatic feats from different heights culminated in a synchronised dive of the men and women from the 27m and 21m platforms. This weekend the current men's leader, England's Gary Hunt, targets a remarkable fourth consecutive victory from almost three times the Olympic diving height; while in the women's event Rhiannan Iffland, the Australian wildcard surprise looks to continue a truly unbelievable run of form, having won the first two events in her debut season. Can she make it a first ever hat-trick of wins for a wildcard?

Gary Hunt and Kyle Mitrione take a look around the beautiful old town. Hunt is also looking for his fourth win in a row this season. Photo: Dean Treml/Red Bull Content Pool.

One who's eager to break the rookie's unbeaten streak is Rachelle Simpson. For the American the location in the south of Italy marks the highlight of her career to date. In Polignano a Mare the 28-year-old topped her 2015 season with a second World Series title in a row, and here she plans to come back strong and follow her male counterpart, reigning champion Gary Hunt.

After a shaky start to the season, the 'brilliant Brit' is definitely on top of his game and is aiming for his fourth season victory. In a location where he's achieved a score of 10 five times in only three dives in 2015 (the highest note from the judges), the World Series record holder with 28 wins out of 54 competitions will be hard to beat. The 'brilliant Brit's' closest competitors are Mexico's Jonathan Paredes and the surprise improver from the United States, Andy Jones, currently second and third in the overall standings before the midway stop in Italy.

Jonathan Paredes takes his first dip in the Adriatic with a dive from a balcony near the platforms. Photo: Dean Treml/Red Bull Content Pool.

For the competition on August 28, a huge crowd is expected in this unique and memorable location where houses rise from the cliffs and where the take-off spot is a private rooftop terrace above the Adriatic Sea.

Watch It Live

This event will be LIVE on August 28 from 1.50 PM GMT on www.redbullcliffdiving.com and Red Bull TV. Red Bull TV is available on connected TVs, gaming consoles, mobile devices and more. Find out more at about.redbull.tv

If you miss the event or simply want to watch all the action again, the replay will be available on demand a few minutes after the event.

Note that the live webcast and replay is geo-blocked in the US due to an exclusive broadcast deal with FOX Sports. The event will air on FOX Sports 1 at 8am (ET) on September 25.